The issue of intersectoral collaboration and the comprehensiveness of the social policies: lessons from the case of the childhood protection system in Chile

Abstract

The new social protection policies that seek to address the multidimensionality of social development claim to have comprehensiveness as an end and intersectorality as a means to tend to it. Thus, the promise of comprehensive approaches is being placed on the relationship between sectors mainly governmental- thus it is decisive how such relationship is built. Using as an example the «System for Comprehensive Childhood Protection, Chile Grows with You» and using secondary and primary sources triangulated with 20 interviews, the study examines the issue of intersectorality. It concludes that in this case the interagency collaboration design corresponds to an intersectorality of low intensity, which is not consistent with the declared aim of comprehensiveness. However, it suggests that the central problem may be settled in the proper ambiguity of the notion of comprehensiveness that was at the origin of the social policy. Therefore, the main lesson to be derived from this case is that the effectiveness of the new social policies is dependent, among other factors, both of the comprehensive approach adopted as well as the interagency collaboration strategies for the purpose.